H D Kumaraswamy wins floor test amid BJP walkout

Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy won the floor test in the Assembly on Friday amid a walkout by the BJP MLAs who dubbed the JD(S)-Congress allaince as “unholy”.

The motion expressing confidence in the three-day old Kumaraswamy coalition government was adopted by voice vote but only in the presence of JD (S) and Congress MLAs.

The smooth sailing for Kumaraswamy brings to an end the 10-day high-voltage political drama after the Assembly polls yielded a hung House. Newly elected JD(S) and Congress legislators, who have been cloistered at a resorts and hotels since May 15 finally started for their homes.

Basically, numbers were in favour of Kumaraswamy as the JD(S)-Congress alliance had a combined strength of 117 compared to the BJP which has 104 legislators in the House.

The day also witnessed senior Congress leader K R Ramesh Kumar being elected as the Speaker unanimously.

Discussion during the trust vote witnessed Kumaraswamy and Leader of the Opposition B S Yeddyurappa indulge in a bitter and acrimonious war of words, which included several personal attacks. In his speech, Yeddyurappa repeatedly played the “betrayal card” accusing Kumaraswamy of “back stabbing” him by not handing over power in the 20:20 coalition arrangement in 2008.

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